• The Economy and the Stimulus Plan

I have heard from so many retail and restaurant owners who just hate the stimulus plan.

I understand why small businesses would hate it. I am going to try to review the basic facts in a small amount of space.

The Bush Administration signed TARP (the Troubled Asset Relief Program). It became law on October 3, 2008.

The Obama Administration signed the ARRA (the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009). It became law on February 17, 2009.

I can certainly agree with the majority of retailers that I hear from. The United States Congress passed two bills spending billions and billions of dollars to help banks, insurance companies, auto manufacturers, and whoever. From a retailers point of view, it appears to be helping everyone except retailers.

Although I personally believe that much of the money has been wasted and could have been spent more wisely, I do believe that our country may not have survived without the passage of at least one of these bills. Although I have my political views, I am going to try to not discuss them in this article.

Our economy was about to collapse in 2008. There were two main causes of the impending collapse. We had far too many people who purchased houses that they could not afford. Many individual investors and investment firms were making investments that they could not afford.

Houses were being purchased with little or no money down. People were buying $300,000 houses with little or no money down. Individuals and groups were investing in houses for quick profits. Imagine buying a house for $300,000 with almost no money down and selling that same house for $350,000 within six months. Even the average person on the street was doing it. The problem was that this became a gigantic Ponzi scheme. So many people were doing it, that we ran out of buyers.

Banks were easily lending out the money. After all, house prices could only go up. Banks were sure that if someone did not pay their mortgage, they could repossess the house and sell it at a profit. The insurance companies collected premiums and insured individuals and banks for any losses.

People stopped buying houses. We reached a point where there were just too many houses for sale and few buyers. The prices of houses started to come down. Now, that $300,000 house was only worth $225,000. Since the investor or owner had little or no money or equity in the house, why keep paying the mortgage on a house that has such a reduced value. People stopped paying their mortgage and just gave up their houses causing prices to come down further.

We reached a point where those poor banks were having financial problems. Too many people were not paying their loans. The insurance companies who insured the banks and individuals for losses had far too many losses than they were able to handle.

At the same time, many investors and investment companies had made leveraged investments. They invested $100 to control $1,000 in investments. Imagine controlling a $1,000 investment with only $100. If their investment went up to $1,500, they would make a $500 profit (with only a $100 investment). The problem is that these investments tanked. Many individuals, investment companies and banks were on the hook for the losses.

What would happen if we didn't have TARP or ARRA? The banks would have collapsed. The insurance companies would have collapsed. The investment firms would have collapsed. People would run to the banks to get their money. Housing prices could have dropped by 75% or more causing even more people to stop paying their mortgages. We had a significant chance of the end of the United States as we know it. Money would have become worthless. Your savings accounts would have become worthless. Your pensions would have become worthless.

At the time, you had President Bush and Secretary of the Treasury Paulson pleading with Congress to pass the TARP bill immediately. There is no doubt in my mind that if this bill was not passed, we were headed for anarchy and perhaps the downfall of the United States.

I agree with most retailers that I have heard from. We have wasted much of the stimulus money. Much of the money was spent unwisely. Much more could have been done to help small businesses survive during the past year. On the other hand, as an amateur economist who has taken two college courses in economics, I understand that billions of dollars had to be immediately infused into the economy in order to prevent what I believe to be a catastrophic economic event from happening (a run on the banks which would have halted all business as we know it).

At the present time, I am pretty optimistic about the future of small businesses. Things are far from good, but I believe that we have more or less bottomed out. If your business has survived, you are doing real well. I believe that holiday sales will be just about even or slightly down from last year. 2010 sales will be slightly up. 2011 will be a great time to own a retail business or restaurant.

For a better understanding of Tarp (signed by Bush), go to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubled_Asset_Relief_Program

For a better understanding of ARRA (signed by Obama), go to:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Recovery_and_Reinvestment_Act_of_2009

• Norton Internet Security 2010...$37.99

We have discussed Norton Internet Security 2010 several times in the past few months.

In my opinion, it is the best protection available for small businesses. It protects your computer against spyware, viruses, and other intrusions. It is better than the FREE alternatives. Both PC Magazine and PC World have selected Norton as the best. The latest version of Norton Internet Security uses less resources and works great.

I know that there are many people out there who have other favorites. However, if you agree with me, you can get a copy of Norton Internet Security from Buy.com for $37.99. That's a great price. The $37.99 let's you install Norton on up to three computers and it is 45% off the $69.95 listed price.

This is not an advertisement. Neither I nor pcAmerica have an association with Buy.com. I have personally purchased lots of "stuff" from Buy.com.

Here's the link:

http://www.buy.com/prod/norton-internet-security-2010-1-user-3pc/q/loc/105/211970497.html?adid=17070

• Increase Your Retail Sales By 67% With WhizBang!

The complete WhizBang! Retail Mastery System sells for $2497.00.

I don't own it nor do I know anyone who has purchased it. I do know that the company owned by Bob and Susan Negen  have been around for a long time and I have heard of them before.

The $2497.00 system sounds like a good deal. The system sounds great. I haven't seen it, so you need to make up your own mind. However, you can get lots of FREE tips and ideas from the Negen website without investing a penny.

To start, subscribe to the FREE WhizBang! Tip of the Week Newsletter at:

http://retailmasterysystem.com/blog/?page_id=2

Some of these FREE tips are really pretty good. You cannot beat the price (FREE). Get on that list! I've received about 90 of those tips so far. Each one is a gem.

One of my favorites comes from the owner of the "Old Company Store" in Massachusetts. She set up a grab bag full of small items that remained unsold in her store. She mixed in some $1, $10 and $50 gift cards in random bags and sold the grab bag for $1 at a nearby street fair. The result was that she brought in $500 from selling the grab bags plus additional customers who made additional purchases as a result of the promotion (and the gift cards).

To learn more about WhizBang! Marketing, go here:

http://bobnegen.com/cart/details_product.aspx?id=0103050847365352

You don't need to spend the $2497.00. There are plenty of free ideas, tips, reports, and other resources on the site...all FREE.

Just click the button below or one of the links above to see more and get on the list.